Finding their future: AHS career fair helps students find path

AHS career fair helps students find path

Alton High School students line up in front of the Phillips 66 booth at a career fair held Tuesday in the school gym. Phillips 66, which operates the Roxana refinery, was there to tell students about the many trade skills, such as welding and pipe-fitting, needed at the refinery.

GODFREY — Alton junior high and high school students got a chance to look at options for life after high school during the annual AHS Career Fair, held Tuesday in the gym.

Available to students were military recruiters, employers, colleges and various agencies, stationed at about 45 separate booths.

“The goal is to get kids thinking about what they want to do after high school, so we have everything from business to farming,” said Assistant Principal Dorothy Mosby, one of the organizers of the fair. “We want to make sure kids are successful when they leave these doors, and that’s why we want to provide every opportunity when they are here.”

In addition to AHS students, eighth-graders from Alton Middle School also attended.

“We want them to start thinking about this in eight grade,” she said. “We try to get students in careers in the ninth grade, from there on they are able to get more information and details, and we have a variety of classes to cater to their interests.”

Senior Jonathan Williams said he is considering studying music at Millikin University in Decatur, but appreciated the chance to look at other schools.

“It’s important to me because we all need to know what careers we’re going to follow when we graduate high school,” he said.

He noted Southern Illinois University Edwardsville had a booth nearby.

“I had a cousin who went for the music over there, now he’s doing great things,” he said. “There are a lot of things that we as students need to at least be opened up to. If we’re not opened up to anything, we’re going to be in a sinkhole.”

Many participants emphasized the need to start considering careers early.

“They need to be looking, obviously, at what they want to do in the future,” said Tony Stephens, a career specialist with Madison County Employment and Training. “Each person has a different idea of what they want to do.”

MCET emphasized skills assessments.

“What we’re telling them today is to take the assessment test, it’s online and free,” he said. “Compare it every year, because interests change, and ideas of what you want to do when you grow up or career fields may change, so you make adjustments accordingly.”

In addition to showing someone what they might be best suited for, it also gives suggestions about educational institutions and costs.

“A lot of kids throw out a school name, but they don’t know the cost of that particular school and that there are other schools locally that offer the same type of training for an affordable price,” he said.

The testing, as well as other career tools, are available at www.illinoisworknet.com.

Alton chiropractor Dr. Kristina Bemis was talking to students about her profession.

“Chiropractic is not only great to become a patient of, but as a career it’s incredibly rewarding,” she said. “We’ve had some really great feedback and inquisitive questions. It’s been really fun to talk to a lot of them.”

At another booth, Staff Sgt. Kenneth Morris was talking to students about the U.S. Marine Corps.

“There are definitely a lot of technical opportunities,” he said. “We have in the Marine Corps more than 300 different jobs that transfer over to the civilian lifestyle. Each job will be professionally trained.”

He also noted the importance of the Marine’s esprit de corps, and that every Marine is also a rifleman.

On either side of him, recruiters from the U.S. Air Force and Navy were also touting the military.

For others, looking over colleges was more important.

Emily Godi, a junior, was looking at what various college booths were offering.

“It’s an assignment in my class, but it’s always important to see what careers are offered,” she said. “I’ve looked at a lot of the colleges so far, they all have pamphlets and they’ll tell you pretty much everything the school has to offer. They really do a good job of telling you what you need to do to go into that field.”

Alton High School students line up in front of the Phillips 66 booth at a career fair held Tuesday in the school gym. Phillips 66, which operates the Roxana refinery, was there to tell students about the many trade skills, such as welding and pipe-fitting, needed at the refinery.

http://thetelegraph.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/web1_CareerFair.jpgAlton High School students line up in front of the Phillips 66 booth at a career fair held Tuesday in the school gym. Phillips 66, which operates the Roxana refinery, was there to tell students about the many trade skills, such as welding and pipe-fitting, needed at the refinery.